Sunday, February 26, 2012

A Warm Hand to Hold

It was a relief to see the positive journal open call. I needed an opening to begin again. I haven’t written for four months because so much has happened in my life, some of it filled with hurt and disappointment pushing me into a space of anger and fear. Both places I hate, knowing full well the results of giving in to an emotional freefall. Heidibeth has sent a kind open invitation to journal about the positive so I’ve decided to accept. Even the simple sensual elegance of fingertips on the computer keys feels soothing to my soul. I’m hoping that I can convey the small, but important time that made me happy today.

Sunday afternoon, I took my oldest granddaughter, aged 7, to see the movie The Secret of Arrietty, from the Borrowers book series. The film is so delicately illustrated, scenes of the outdoors reminded me of the finest watercolors, light through trees, leaves used for umbrellas, postage stamps for wall art, a straight pin substitutes for a sword. The colors are scrumptious. Delightful, slow paced, with just enough humor. In one scene, a clearly American family sits down to dinner, but whip out their chopsticks to eat. It’s Japanese anime, but not so you would notice. I’m not wild about the big eye thing.

The main character, Arrietty, is a strong, feisty, and compassionate teenage girl. As a grandmother, I found her attributes to be refreshing compared to all the princess role models lately.

The film is very endearing, but not in a sappy way.. During a tense moment in the movie, where the menacing housekeeper is phoning an exterminator to get rid of the little people, my Rebecca leans over, with eyebrows knitted, whispers to me, “She’s a bad bad person.”I told her, “Yep, but I think it will turn out okay.” Rebecca leaned closer to me and put her small warm hand on my arm.